Oklahoma State football lost its first game of the season on Saturday vs. Utah 22-19 in Stillwater. It was a battle between two teams who plan to be competing for a Big 12 Championship come December. But in the Big 12 opener for both teams, it was the Utes coming out on top.
The final score makes the game look closer than it was for most of the game, as Utah led 22-3 before the Pokes put together a couple of touchdown drives in the final six minutes of the game.
After an opening-drive field goal for the Cowboys, Oklahoma State’s offense went: three-and-out, three-and-out, missed field goal and then interception.
But the Cowboys defense kept them in the game, down only 10-3 at halftime. However, despite Mike Gundy pulling Alan Bowman and turning to Garrett Rangel, the offense wasn’t any more efficient for the Cowboys. In fact, it was arguably worse. Rangel got four drives under his belt to start the second half, which resulted in a total of 32 yards, before Gundy turned back to Bowman. Bowman went three-and-out, interception, and then put together back-to-back touchdown drives to give Oklahoma State a chance late in the game.
Mike Gundy’s Comments
Following the loss, Gundy commented on pulling Alan Bowman from the game to start the second half and said, “Sometimes you gotta get a guy out and calm him down a little. … I just felt like we weren’t getting good play, and we needed a relief pitcher.”
As for whether or not there is a quarterback controversy going forward, Gundy put that one to bed quickly, saying that Bowman will be the guy moving forward.
Bowman finished the game on Saturday 16/33 for 206 yards, with two touchdowns and two interceptions. This came one week after his best performance of the season when he torched Tulsa for five touchdown passes.
On the season, Bowman has 10 touchdowns to four interceptions, with 967 passing yards and a 67% completion percentage. Bowman and the Cowboys will look to bounce back next week and pick up their first Big 12 win of the season on the road against the Kansas State Wildcats.
